mcp-from-openapi: Bypass of OpenAPI external $ref SSRF fix in latest FrontMCP and mcp-from-openapi

CISA KEV is observed exploitation evidence. FIRST EPSS is a dated prediction of exploitation in the next 30 days. Missing scores are unknown. This collector requests predictions only for explicit CVE aliases in the public NuGet archive; Microsoft release views retain their existing prediction scope.

No collected risk observation for these identifiers. This does not establish absence of exploitation or a zero probability.

FrontMCP is a TypeScript-first framework for the Model Context Protocol (MCP). From mcp-from-openapi 2.3.0 until 2.5.0 and from frontmcp and @frontmcp/adapters 1.2.1 until 1.5.0, libs/adapters/src/openapi/openapi.adapter.ts loadOpenAPISpec() forwards untrusted OpenAPI url and spec inputs and loadOptions.refResolution to OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromURL() and OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromJSON(). The external $ref guard checks parsed hostname strings without resolving addresses, pinning validated addresses, revalidating redirect targets, or normalizing IPv4-mapped IPv6. An authenticated user who can import or configure an OpenAPI specification in a hosted or multi-user deployment can use DNS-to-loopback resolution, redirect-to-loopback behavior, or IPv4-mapped IPv6 loopback forms to cause backend-origin requests to internal services. This can expose internal administrative APIs, metadata-like services, and other private network endpoints. The practical impact is lower when only a trusted local administrator can configure OpenAPI specs, and disabling external reference protocols prevents the external $ref request. This issue is fixed in mcp-from-openapi 2.5.0 and frontmcp and @frontmcp/adapters 1.5.0.

Source published

15 Sep 2026 15:13:40 UTC

Source modified

16 Sep 2026 16:06:53 UTC

Observed here

23 Oct 2026 15:48:27 UTC

Source terms

CVE Program Terms of Use

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: cve-program · CVE Program Terms of Use. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

CVSS 3.1 · 8.5 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N

FrontMCP is a TypeScript-first framework for the Model Context Protocol (MCP). From mcp-from-openapi 2.3.0 until 2.5.0 and from frontmcp and @frontmcp/adapters 1.2.1 until 1.5.0, libs/adapters/src/openapi/openapi.adapter.ts loadOpenAPISpec() forwards untrusted OpenAPI url and spec inputs and loadOptions.refResolution to OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromURL() and OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromJSON(). The external $ref guard checks parsed hostname strings without resolving addresses, pinning validated addresses, revalidating redirect targets, or normalizing IPv4-mapped IPv6. An authenticated user who can import or configure an OpenAPI specification in a hosted or multi-user deployment can use DNS-to-loopback resolution, redirect-to-loopback behavior, or IPv4-mapped IPv6 loopback forms to cause backend-origin requests to internal services. This can expose internal administrative APIs, metadata-like services, and other private network endpoints. The practical impact is lower when only a trusted local administrator can configure OpenAPI specs, and disabling external reference protocols prevents the external $ref request. This issue is fixed in mcp-from-openapi 2.5.0 and frontmcp and @frontmcp/adapters 1.5.0.

Source published

Sep 15, 2026, 3:13:40 PM (timezone not stated)

Source modified

Sep 16, 2026, 4:06:53 PM (timezone not stated)

Observed here

11 Nov 2026 15:02:26 UTC

Source terms

ENISA EUVD · source terms and attribution apply

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: euvd · ENISA EUVD · source terms and attribution apply. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

EUVD CVSS 3.1 · 8.5 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N

FrontMCP is a TypeScript-first framework for the Model Context Protocol (MCP). From mcp-from-openapi 2.3.0 until 2.5.0 and from frontmcp and @frontmcp/adapters 1.2.1 until 1.5.0, libs/adapters/src/openapi/openapi.adapter.ts loadOpenAPISpec() forwards untrusted OpenAPI url and spec inputs and loadOptions.refResolution to OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromURL() and OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromJSON(). The external $ref guard checks parsed hostname strings without resolving addresses, pinning validated addresses, revalidating redirect targets, or normalizing IPv4-mapped IPv6. An authenticated user who can import or configure an OpenAPI specification in a hosted or multi-user deployment can use DNS-to-loopback resolution, redirect-to-loopback behavior, or IPv4-mapped IPv6 loopback forms to cause backend-origin requests to internal services. This can expose internal administrative APIs, metadata-like services, and other private network endpoints. The practical impact is lower when only a trusted local administrator can configure OpenAPI specs, and disabling external reference protocols prevents the external $ref request. This issue is fixed in mcp-from-openapi 2.5.0 and frontmcp and @frontmcp/adapters 1.5.0.

Source published

15 Sep 2026 16:17:18 UTC

Source modified

30 Sep 2026 17:51:56 UTC

Observed here

25 Oct 2026 14:19:22 UTC

Source terms

NIST NVD usage terms; underlying source attribution retained

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: nvd · NIST NVD usage terms; underlying source attribution retained. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

CVSS 3.1 · [email protected] · Secondary · 8.5 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N

## Summary The published fix for GHSA-v6ph-xcq9-qxxj / CVE-2026-39885 added a direct hostname denylist for OpenAPI external `$ref` dereferencing, but the latest patched dependency `mcp-from-openapi` 2.3.0 still makes backend-origin requests to loopback when the target is reached through hostname resolution, redirects, or IPv4-mapped IPv6 syntax. FrontMCP latest release v1.2.1 and current main still call `OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromURL()` and `OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromJSON()` from `mcp-from-openapi` 2.3.0 when loading OpenAPI adapters. An attacker who can cause a hosted or multi-user FrontMCP deployment to load an untrusted OpenAPI spec can trigger requests from the server to localhost or private services during tool generation. This is a latest-version bypass of the previous fix. A direct `http://127.0.0.1` `$ref` control is now denied and produces zero canary hits, while semantically equivalent loopback targets still reach the canary. ## Latest versions checked - `frontmcp` npm latest: 1.2.1 - `@frontmcp/adapters` npm latest: 1.2.1 - `mcp-from-openapi` npm latest: 2.3.0 - FrontMCP release tag: v1.2.1, commit db323976c66297d684a3e63bbfe1db6b310f2944 - FrontMCP current main checked: c15b79abe8c6a3cb71d4b7a3bafb8190730dc756 The release tag and current main both keep `mcp-from-openapi` 2.3.0 in `package.json` and `libs/adapters/package.json`, and both keep the OpenAPI adapter forwarding untrusted `url`, `spec`, and `loadOptions.refResolution` into `OpenAPIToolGenerator`. ## Technical details FrontMCP's OpenAPI adapter reaches the affected dependency paths: - `libs/adapters/src/openapi/openapi.adapter.ts` imports `OpenAPIToolGenerator` from `mcp-from-openapi`. - `loadOpenAPISpec()` calls `OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromURL(this.options.url, ...)` and forwards `loadOptions.refResolution`. - The same method calls `OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromJSON(this.options.spec, ...)` and forwards `loadOptions.refResolution`. In `mcp-from-openapi` 2.3.0, the patched guard is applied before the HTTP resolver fetches an external `$ref`. It checks the parsed URL hostname string against deny patterns for direct local and private addresses. The resolver does not resolve hostnames before allow or deny decisions, does not pin the validated IP to the fetch, and does not revalidate redirect targets before following them. It also misses IPv4-mapped IPv6 loopback forms. As a result, these URLs are accepted by the guard but cause a loopback request from the backend: - `http://127.0.0.1.nip.io:<port>/schema.json`, because the hostname string is not a direct IP even though it resolves to 127.0.0.1. - `http://127.0.0.1.nip.io:<port>/redirect`, because the first host passes and the actual request follows a redirect to `http://127.0.0.1:<port>/schema.json`. - `http://[::ffff:127.0.0.1]:<port>/schema.json` and `http://[::ffff:7f00:1]:<port>/schema.json`, because IPv4-mapped IPv6 loopback is not normalized and denied. `OpenAPIToolGenerator.fromURL()` is also still unguarded for the initial OpenAPI spec URL. The PoC includes that as supporting evidence, but the primary report is the external `$ref` fix bypass. ## Reproduction The attached local PoC starts a loopback canary and loads generated OpenAPI specs using `mcp-from-openapi` 2.3.0. The request body schema contains a single external `$ref` for each test case. The canary records every backend-origin request. Run: ```bash cd /home/unkn0wn/security_audit/frontmcp-ssrf-poc node repro-frontmcp-latest-ssrf-bypasses.mjs ``` Important output from a fresh run on 2026-05-25: ```json {"name":"direct-127-denied-control","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://127.0.0.1:45117/schema.json","ok":false,"hitCount":0,"hits":[]} {"name":"dns-name-to-127-bypass","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117/schema.json","ok":true,"hitCount":1,"hits":[{"url":"/schema.json","host":"127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117","authorization":null}]} {"name":"dns-name-to-127-bypass-with-allowedHosts","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117/schema.json","ok":true,"hitCount":1,"hits":[{"url":"/schema.json","host":"127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117","authorization":null}]} {"name":"redirect-to-127-after-allowed-host","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117/redirect","ok":true,"hitCount":2,"hits":[{"url":"/redirect","host":"127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117","authorization":null},{"url":"/schema.json","host":"127.0.0.1:45117","authorization":null}]} {"name":"ipv4-mapped-ipv6-dotted-bypass","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://[::ffff:127.0.0.1]:45117/schema.json","ok":true,"hitCount":1,"hits":[{"url":"/schema.json","host":"[::ffff:7f00:1]:45117","authorization":null}]} {"name":"ipv4-mapped-ipv6-hex-bypass","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://[::ffff:7f00:1]:45117/schema.json","ok":true,"hitCount":1,"hits":[{"url":"/schema.json","host":"[::ffff:7f00:1]:45117","authorization":null}]} {"name":"external-refs-disabled-control","kind":"external_ref","refUrl":"http://127.0.0.1.nip.io:45117/schema.json","ok":true,"hitCount":0,"hits":[]} ``` Controls: 1. Direct loopback `$ref` is denied and the canary records zero requests. 2. Numeric IPv4 variants tested as parser controls were denied with zero requests. 3. Default `file://` resolution was denied in this runtime. 4. Setting `refResolution.allowedProtocols: []` prevents the external request, but this is not the default. ## Impact The previous advisory documented SSRF during untrusted OpenAPI `$ref` dereferencing. The latest patched version still lets an attacker trigger backend-origin requests to loopback or private network services through equivalent URL forms. In hosted or multi-user FrontMCP deployments where users can import or configure OpenAPI specs, this can expose internal admin APIs, metadata-like services, and other network endpoints that external users cannot reach directly. The impact depends on whether a deployment treats OpenAPI adapter configuration as trusted administrator-only input. If untrusted authenticated users can import specs, this is a high-impact SSRF fix bypass. If only a local administrator can configure OpenAPI specs, the practical severity is lower. ## Remediation 1. Do not rely on parsed hostname denylist checks for external `$ref` URLs. 2. Resolve hostnames before the request and reject loopback, private, link-local, multicast, unspecified, and metadata ranges. 3. Normalize IPv4-mapped IPv6 before range checks. 4. Revalidate every redirect target before following it, or disable redirects during external `$ref` dereferencing. 5. Pin the validated IP to the actual request with a custom dispatcher, lookup hook, or equivalent connect-time control. 6. Apply the same protected client to `fromURL()` initial spec loads. 7. Consider disabling external refs by default for untrusted OpenAPI specs and requiring explicit allowlists. 8. Add regression tests for direct loopback, DNS-to-loopback, redirect-to-loopback, IPv4-mapped IPv6, numeric IP forms, file refs, and disabled external refs.

Source published

11 Sep 2026 22:02:04 UTC

Source modified

11 Sep 2026 22:15:04 UTC

Observed here

24 Oct 2026 13:17:17 UTC

Source terms

GitHub Advisory Database · CC-BY-4.0

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: osv · GitHub Advisory Database · CC-BY-4.0. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

CVSS_V3 · CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:L/A:N

Publisher rating · HIGH